Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-31

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Nowadays, a growing number of people with health problems are trying alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual doctor.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

There is a growing trend that people suffering from diseases prefer to find alternative medicines and treatments rather than visiting their usual doctor. Although it is a positive development because home-made medicines are cheap and accessible, it has few negative impacts on our health and healthcare system. I believe that people should visit their usual doctor when they face health problems because taking home-made medicines with unknown ingredients poses several risk to our health.

Being easily accessible and cheap, traditional home-made medicines are made from simple ingredients without any complicated procedure. In addition, it's a great facility to the people living on mountains and rural areas as quick treatment is given in case of injuries or accidents. Furthermore, typical home-made medicines have no side effects if the ingredients are known.

There are a few negative impacts associated with the increase in the use of traditional medicines and treatments. One of the major disadvantage is the quick allergic reaction as people have zero information about the contents. Apart from that, people without any professioal degree and knowledge put the lives of innocent people at stake with trial and error method. This creates a sense of irresponsibility in a society as most of the time culprits are not arrested.

In my opinion, people should try to avoid these traditional medicines if they don't know what are the ingredients except in emergency or accident or the medicines are from a certified professional. Also, government take strict actions against the culprits by developing enforcement bodies. Public awareneness compaign should be done at all levels to educate people.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear: you acknowledge that alternative remedies can be accessible and inexpensive, but conclude that people should consult a doctor because unknown ingredients may be risky. This addresses the positive-or-negative question and includes relevant points about rural access, allergic reactions, and unqualified practitioners. The response also shows some development through explanations, such as linking unknown contents to allergic reactions. However, the positive side is not fully reconciled with your overall view, and the claim that home-made medicines have “no side effects if the ingredients are known” is broad and insufficiently supported. To strengthen the response, state more explicitly whether you consider the overall trend positive or negative, then develop each main reason with a specific example or explanation.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a coherent overall arrangement: an introduction, a paragraph on potential benefits, a paragraph on risks, and a concluding recommendation. Linking expressions such as “In addition,” “Furthermore,” and “Apart from that” help signal relationships between points. Your conclusion also returns to the central issue. At times, however, the progression is less clear because the introduction calls the development positive before emphasising its negative impacts, while the final position is more cautious and negative. Some transitions feel mechanical, and the final paragraph combines advice to individuals with government action and public education without clearly connecting these proposals. Make your overall position consistent from the introduction onward and use clearer links to show how each paragraph supports it.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “alternative medicines,” “allergic reaction,” “ingredients,” and “enforcement bodies,” and your meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at more specific expressions, such as “put the lives of innocent people at stake.” However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “a great facility to the people,” “quick treatment is given,” and “zero information about the contents.” Spelling errors such as “professioal” and “awareneness compaign” also reduce accuracy. Aim for more natural academic phrasing and check spelling carefully; for example, describe remedies as “readily available” and refer to people having “little knowledge of the ingredients.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including a concessive opening with “Although” and a conditional clause beginning “if they don't know.” Most sentences communicate the intended meaning, and the range is sufficient to discuss causes, risks, and recommendations. Some grammatical errors remain, however. For example, “it has few negative impacts” needs an article or a different quantifier, “several risk” requires a plural noun, and “One of the major disadvantage” needs a plural form. There are also issues with verb agreement in “government take strict actions” and clause structure in “what are the ingredients.” Review agreement, articles, plurals, and indirect-question word order, while continuing to use complex structures.

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